Kamryn Babb joins Buckeyes stars as 2021 football captains
Sidelined junior selected for endurance, positivity
Five of Ohio State's six captains did not come as a surprise.
Offensive lineman Thayer Munford and wide receiver Chris Olave are established stars. Defensive tackle Haskell Garrett and defensive end Zach Harrison are anchors on a line that's expected to dominate. Even linebacker Teradja Mitchell, who hopes to be a first-year starter, is considered a leader on that unit.
But the sixth captain, wide receiver Kamryn Babb, is mostly unknown to the casual Ohio State fan. The junior from St. Louis has missed two seasons because of knee injuries and is sidelined now. He doesn't have a reception in his Buckeye career.
But his perseverance and positive attitude caused his teammates to select him as a captain.
“One of the more amazing stories I've been around,” Buckeyes coach Ryan Day said Saturday. “This is a guy who has been through four ACLS. He's currently unavailable. But he came up and spoke to the team last week about what resilience means, and that was a word that we spent about three days on here during camp.
“Something that's a mark of a lot of successful people is the ability to be resilient and bounce back from adversity and failure and emotional pain, and he is the epitome of that.”
Day said Babb spoke to the team and described how he has stayed positive despite the injuries.
“He's been an unbelievable leader,” Day said. “He's set a standard. The hard part for Kam is he really just hasn't spent much time on the field. But his impact has been left already on this program.”
All are first-time captains. Olave will be starting for the third year and turned down a chance to be a first-round pick in this year's NFL draft. Munford, also a third-year starter, surprised many by
deciding to return as well.
Garrett overcame near-tragedy when he was shot last summer to have a breakthrough 2020 season.
Harrison has drawn raves for his development this year and looks ready to fulfill his immense potential. Mitchell has bided his time playing behind veteran linebackers and is eager for his chance.
“They were selected by their teammates, which is one of the biggest
honors that you can have as a football player,” Day said. “(It's) a good mixture of guys.
“We're going to count on those guys to be leaders for us, but some of our greatest leaders in the last five years weren't captains. We challenged our team to make sure that even if you weren't named a captain, it doesn't mean you're not a leader.” brabinowitz@dispatch.com @brdispatch